A Beautiful Front Porch Renovation: Welcome to the 169th Metamorphosis Monday!

Greetings!  How was your weekend?  I hope it was as beautiful where you live as it was here!  Glorious spring!

Michael blogs at the wonderful blog, Rattlebridge Farm, and recently she bought a new home.  She's currently in the middle of several renovations, both inside and out.  For this Metamorphosis Monday I'm excited to share the front porch transformation that's underway.

This is how the exterior of Michael's home looked when she first purchased it.  She appreciates the quality of a brick home but prefers the look of painted brick.  The existing brick porch overwhelmed the entrance area making it dark and giving it a tunnel-like feeling.

Michael is pulling inspiration for the new design of her home from several sources.   This home's front porch below with its wonderful railed balcony and columns is the look she is going for with her new porch design.

Source: Shutterstock

Inspiration, can come from anywhere, even a Dept. 56 house.  I had to smile when Michael shared this pic with me as one of her inspiration pics, because I adore that darling little house, too.

You may remember seeing it in this Christmas table setting I put together for our Christmas dinner in 2009.

Michael liked the layered molding around the top of my front porch addition detailed in this post:  Porch Addition.  She also liked the color red I chose for the door:  Benjamin Moore, Heritage Red.

This beautiful porch in a Pottery Barn ad also served as an inspiration porch for Michael's renovation.  This door makes me want to remove the brass kick plate from mine.  I love my brass kick plate, but I think my door would look longer without it.  I love the sidelights on either side of this PB porch...would love to add those on either side of my door.  Wonder how expensive that would be?  See how these inspiration pics lead to big trouble! ;)

Pssst:  If you like the look of the garland, you'll find a Pottery Barn knock-off garland tutorial, HERE.

Source: Pottery Barn

The old porch was removed and the new porch addition got underway.  For her new porch, Michael enlisted the services of Mike Cox with Cox Construction, Inc.

Notice the area above the porch roof where the outline of the old porch is visible.  That area will receive three new windows...a center window with narrow windows on either side.

The center window is going to gorgeous.  Michael described it this way: "The window over the door will have a spider arch-in-a-square design and beneath it, the window will have a bulls eye grille. The two (soon to be ordered and installed) smaller windows beside the center one will have the bulls eye pattern. We are replacing the sidelight with beveled glass and a bulls eye grille. I have a crude drawing, which I will also attach. The rest of the windows will have either a farmhouse grille or the bulls eye. We are going to try one of each."

Between removing the imposing brick porch and adding the windows above, the entry will become much brighter and open.  Going to be beautiful!

Here's a better view showing the progress on the new windows.

Michael tested out some soft, gray-white colors for the brick.  Ultimately she chose Sherwin Williams, Tennessee Limestone from the Nashville Collection.

You can see Tennessee Limestone painted here on either side of the front door.  The shutters will be painted either black or Charleston Green.  Below you'll see where Michael tested various colors for the front door.

Her final choice: Benjamin Moore's Heritage Red.

I love the arched doorway and gorgeous fanlight...so beautiful!   This Met Monday post is a bit of a cliff hanger because this transformation is currently underway as we speak.   Michael said, "The window above the porch has to be installed before the railing. Two smaller windows will be installed on either side of the present window (over front door).  First, the window company will make a sketch (1-2 weeks), and then they will make the grilles and the 2 small windows (about 2 weeks).  However, I believe the house will be painted while we're waiting. Work on the foyer will continue this week."  

The porch is just the beginning.  Lots more renovations are planned and some are already underway, including the entry.   I can't wait to share Michael's plans and all the beautiful renovations as they occur over the next few weeks and months!  Michael, thanks so much for taking us along on this journey!

Pssst:  Don't forget to enter the Giveaway, HERE for Michael's new book, A Teeny Bit of Trouble and a chance for a $100 Amazon Shopping Spree.

Looking forward to the Before and Afters for this Met Monday!


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